- Heat the water and mix with the spices. Then add the orange zest and the orange juice.
- Add the dried fruit, and hermetically seal the whole mixture.
- Leave to rest for at least 12 hours so that the flavour can develop...
Day 2:
- Knead into a smooth dough.
- Use, therefore, chilled eggs.
- Combine with all the ingredients except the Dairy butter and fruits/spice mixture.
- Form a dough with a smooth but not too firm texture (not too soft!).
- Knead for 5 minutes with the mixer on second speed.
- Gradually add the Dairy butter (room temperature).
- Knead the dough until it is no longer sticky. Then slowly add the fruits/spice mixture using a dough hook.
- The dough needs to be at 24 °C.
- Leave the dough to rise for 1 hour..
- Fold the dough together, place in a bowl and cover with plastic film.
- Chill for 1 hour in the fridge to allow the butter to stiffen.
- This allows you to work more firmly.
- You can also mix the dough 1 or 2 days beforehand.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and work it.
- Weigh out pieces of 100 g and form into balls.
- Leave to rest for 20 minutes.
- Form into balls a 2nd time, and lay the pieces close to one another in a 3 x 4 formation on both baking plates.
- Lump all the dough balls together on a high-rimmed baking plate roughly the same size as all the pieces combined. This will allow the buns to bake nicely onto one another, while also having the tray rim on the side.
- It also protects the buns from drying out and burning on the side.
- (At this stage, they can also be frozen for up to 1 week if covered).
- Leave to rest for 2 hours and rise at 25 °C.
- Egg wash the buns and apply the lines for the cross.
- Bake for approx. 15 minutes in a convection oven at 180 °C until the buns are golden brown.
- Coat the hot cross buns with brown sugar syrup after baking.
